1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an adapter and more particularly an adapter for converting existing bottled water dispensers to a dispenser capable of receiving multiple containers, each having less capacity then a conventional glass bottle used for this purpose, and a unique arrangement for connecting multiple containers to an existing component of the water dispenser.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Water dispensers of the type receiving water in large glass bottles have been used for many years in various orientations. Such structures usually include a five gallon water bottle positioned in inverted position for water flow from the bottle by gravity into a reservoir from which water is withdrawn by a spigot or faucet. Such dispensers are capable of dispensing cold water only or in some instances, cold or hot water may be dispensed through manually actuated spigots or faucets into a drinking receptacle or other receptacle in a well-known manner. The normal procedure of replacing the glass bottle when the water therein has been dispensed is for the glass bottle to be replaced with a filled bottle. The existing glass bottles are rather heavy and unwieldly and considerable breakage occurs and, in addition, when the empty or partially empty bottle is removed and a full bottle is placed in position on the dispenser, there is a frequent occurrence of spillage at the site of the dispenser. In addition, the large bottles must be transported to and from the filling plant and must be sterilized before refilling and the actual replacement procedure requires considerable time as well as considerable strength and manual dexterity on the part of the person doing the replacement. For these and other reasons, efforts have been made to replace the large returnable glass bottles with smaller, more easily handled, disposable containers. Prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,212,681; 3,223,117; 3,430,824 and Des. 224,639 disclose containers of this general type which are used for dispensing various types of liquids. U.S. Pat. No. 3,843,021 discloses a liquid dispenser with a disposable container in which a float valve is provided to control the flow from the container into a reservoir which is open to the atmosphere when the container is being changed and which requires proper operation of the float valve for operation of the device.